


Bless this Ink and Our Souls

by Akira_of_the_Twilight



Series: My Roommate is a Demon (and There is Going to be Trouble) [12]
Category: Marvel (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Demons, Alternate Universe - Urban Fantasy, Banter, Demon Tony Stark, Established Relationship, Established- James "Bucky" Barnes/Clint Barton/Steve Rogers, Holy Matt Murdock, Kissing, M/M, Polyamory, Polyamory Negotiations, Relationship Negotiation, Secrets, Slow Build, Surprise Kissing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-12
Updated: 2016-07-27
Packaged: 2018-07-23 01:50:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,955
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7461861
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Akira_of_the_Twilight/pseuds/Akira_of_the_Twilight
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Steve and Tony venture to Nelson & Murdock, Attorneys at Law to bless the ink that they will need for their protection spell. </p><p>Things get heated between Steve and Tony, and Matt Murdock reveals a secret of Tony's that leaves Steve stunned.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

“Pretty small for a law firm.” Tony read over the address Wanda had given him.

“Bucky mentioned that it was small,” Steve said, trying slow down his heartbeat.

Bucky was working today and Clint was in class, so it was agreed that Steve and Tony would approach Matthew Murdock. From the moment Tony had hopped onto the back of Steve’s motorcycle and hugged him, Steve’s heart had been pounding in his chest.

Steve was practically having a heart attack, and the last time he’d felt like this he’d been crushing on Clint hard.

Steve didn’t know if this chest pounding and sweaty palms feeling was because he was crushing on Tony or if he was nervous about kissing Tony.

Steve tried to calm down and reminded himself that just because he wanted to kiss Tony that didn’t mean Tony wanted to kiss him.

“Hello up there!” Tony had taken to standing on his tip toes and was waving his hand in front of Steve’s face. “Can anyone hear me or is it all coming in static?”

Steve flushed. “Sorry, I was preoccupied.”

“With thoughts of me?” Tony batted his eyelashes. “It’s okay, darling. I know I’m the stuff of fantasies.”

Steve swallowed hard. If only Tony knew how close he was to the truth.

“Now as I was saying.” Tony pointed to the tall and narrow building made up of several different offices and businesses. “If this guy is the real deal, then he’s probably going to have wards up around his office to keep me out, so I’m depending on you to sell this. You have the ink, right?”

Steve nodded and patted the satchel draped over his shoulder. They’d gotten the ink from Wanda and Pietro before visiting Murdock.

“Good. Remember, you and your roommates are three poor souls being hounded relentlessly by demons. If he asks why that is, fudge the truth a little. Clint befriended a demon unknowingly, and now demons are obsessed with you three.”

“Should I really be lying to a holy man?” Steve asked.

“He’s not a real priest.” Tony snorted in derision.

“But he still is holy and powerful enough to bless things against demons.”

“I swear you are not damning yourself to an entirety in Hell if you lie to this guy.”

Steve was willing to trust that he wouldn’t go to Hell, but that didn’t mean there wouldn’t be consequences for lying.

Tony touched Steve’s arm and looked at him with piercing eyes. “Your attention is divided.”

Steve flinched. “That obvious?”

Tony cocked his head, brow furrowing. “You’re worried about something, but it’s not just about lying to this Murdock guy. You want something, but you’re—”

Steve pulled away from Tony and marched up the steps of the building. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll shake it off.”

Steve’s hand was on the door handle when Tony grabbed his wrist and tugged him a step back. “No.” Tony turned him around and looked Steve over again. His hold on Steve tightened, and brown eyes met Steve’s blue. The worry in Tony’s gaze threw Steve for a moment.

“Did Bucky and Clint give you permission?”

Still stunned and confused, Steve nodded.

Tony took a deep breath. “Okay. Well, gotta get you undistracted, so here goes nothing. Personally, I would have preferred candlelight, but I’m a romantic softie.”

Steve opened his mouth to question Tony, only to have Tony’s lips pressed against his.

It was like being punched in the head, but instead of pain, all he saw were stars. His breath caught in his throat and his heart stopped as he tried to recollect himself.

His hands twitched. Just as his fingers settled on Tony’s hips, Tony pulled away.

“Okay, curiosity sated,” Tony declared. His hands dropped from Steve. “Now we can—”

“It wasn’t enough,” the words burst from Steve. Indignation and embarrassment warred in Steve. He knew he shouldn’t be so demanding, but he felt like he’d barely been given a chance to enjoy the kiss—to make sure that there was something there between him and Tony, and not just Steve reacting in surprise to the intimate act. “I didn’t have enough time to process it.”

Tony’s eyes widened in surprise. It was almost child-like and innocent.

Steve huffed in frustration. “Can we try again, please?”

Tony blinked. “We're you given permission for more than one kiss?”

Steve flushed. He hadn’t been, but he’d also thought that he would be given time to enjoy and analyze his kiss too. He didn’t think Bucky or Clint had thought Tony would just snatch the kiss from him.

Tony shook his head in disbelief. “Okay, one more. Blame it on me if Bucky and Clint get mad.” And just like that, Tony wrapped his arms around Steve’s neck, letting one hand latch onto the back of Steve’s head and guiding him into the kiss.

The first kiss had made Steve see stars, but the second one set off a spark that lit Steve’s blood on fire. His hands on Tony’s hips gripped tighter, to the point that Steve would not be surprised to see bruises along Tony’s hip bones later. He pressed Tony to him, backing himself up against the wall so Tony was practically splayed on top of him.

He could feel some hesitation from Tony as he kissed Steve, and Steve did his best to encourage Tony to kiss him fully. He didn’t know if this would be his last kiss with Tony, but if it was, he wanted Tony to give him his all.

Someone cleared their throat loudly.

Tony broke the kiss. When Tony tried to take a step away, though, Steve held him in place. He wasn’t ready to let go of Tony just yet.

A man in a suit and wearing red glasses. “Excuse me, gentlemen, but I have to get to work, and I believe you two are blocking me.” He tapped his white cane on Tony’s foot.

“Right.” Tony tried to take a step back, but Steve pulled Tony flush against his chest and pushed himself as close to the wall as humanly possible. Steve also sucked in his stomach to make more room for the man to walk past them.

Tony let out a squeak that surprised and amused Steve. He’d never heard Tony make such a plaintive sound before.

“Sorry,” Steve apologized to the man. “We should be out of your way now.”

The man chuckled and walked up the steps. “Thank you.”

The man climbed the steps and reached out for the door handle.

For a millisecond Steve was wracked with guilt; he should have at least held the door open for the blind man.

The man was fine on his own though, opening the door with ease. However, the man paused for a moment and slightly cocked his head at Tony. If it weren’t for the fact that the man was blind, Steve would have thought the man was seizing Tony up.

Tony tensed in Steve’s hold and snapped his head in the direction of the blind man.

A beat passed in which Tony and the man did nothing.

“Matt Murdock?” Tony asked, voice even despite his hand coming up to squeeze Steve’s arm like it was the only thing anchoring him at the moment.

The man quirked an eyebrow. He let the door shut and pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose with one finger. “I’m sorry, have we met?”

Tony plastered on a smirk, but his bone-crushing grip on Steve gave away his unease. “You haven’t had the honor.”

The corner of Matt’s mouth twitched upward. “Pride is a sin.”

“Yet to be without pride is also a sin, for if you do not love yourself then you do not love one of god’s creations,” Tony quipped.

Again, the corner of the man’s mouth twitched in amusement. “Are you testing my knowledge of scripture, Mr. …?”

“Tony.” Tony untangled himself from Steve but still kept his iron hold on Steve’s arm. “This pure soul is Steve, and he has a favor to ask of you.”

“A favor?” Matt turned his head toward the door then back to Steve and Tony. “Normally I would invite you in for a consultation, Steve, but I fear your boyfriend wouldn’t be welcomed within my office. Then again, I doubt you two are here for legal purposes.”

Steve reached across himself to squeeze the hand Tony had on him. To Steve Matt appeared harmless, but there must be something he couldn’t see or sense about the man that made him plenty dangerous to Tony if Tony was clinging to him so. It brought Steve’s protective instincts to the surface. “My boyfriends and I are worried about demons attacking us, and we want to get some tattoos on our bodies to protect us from them. We were hoping you could bless the ink we intend to use.”

Matt turned his head toward Tony then to Steve then back to Tony. “Is he aware?” Matt asked Tony.

Tony scowled. “He knows what I am. He has two very human boyfriends who need protection.”

Matt made a thoughtful sound.

Tony tightened his hold on Steve then let it go lax. “Listen, you may not trust him because he’s associated with me, but if you just talk to Steve and his boyfriends, I’m sure you’ll realize that they are good people in a shitty situation. Don’t let me be the determining factor here.”

“And what if it was?” Matt asked casually.

Tony went ramrod straight.

“Tony may be a demon, but he’s one of the kindest people I know,” Steve stepped up to defend Tony. “And right now, he’s just trying to protect the people close to him. I would think as a holy man you could look past what he is and see he has good intentions. He’s not some soulless creature.”

“I am very much aware that he is not soulless, which is why I am so intrigued.”

Steve froze.

Tony went from tense to statue like.

Steve had been speaking figuratively before, but now there was one very important question on his mind: Tony had a soul?


	2. Chapter 2

Steve fidgeted and tried not to stare at Tony as they waited outside of Matt’s law office. They were currently seated on two wooden chairs in the middle of a hallway that looked like it hadn’t been swept in weeks. Right next to them was the door to Nelson and Murdock's law offices. Behind it people could be heard moving about and talking to each other.

After revealing Tony possessed a soul—a _soul —_ and the initial shock and interrogation from Steve, Matt had agreed to bless the ink, but Matt wanted to do it in his office. Since Tony couldn’t go inside the actual office and Steve refused to leave him alone, the two of them had been forced to sit in the hallway like two kids waiting to be called into the principal’s office.

“Could you stop staring?” Tony asked.

Steve jerked then bowed his head guiltily. “Sorry. I just… Well, no. It’s not that I never thought you didn’t have a soul, but I didn’t expect you to have one either.”

Tony gave Steve a disbelieving face. “Is my soul Schrödinger's cat to you?”

Steve shook his head. “No. Yes. Maybe? I don’t know. I hadn’t really thought about it, but it makes sense that since you are a demon, you wouldn’t have one, right?”

“That is what most people say,” Tony said dryly.

“Then how?”

Tony didn’t answer.

Steve bit the inside of his cheek to keep himself from demanding answers. He knew he shouldn’t pry into personal matters, and a soul was obviously a personal thing. His curiosity gnawed at him though.

“Is that why so many demons are after you? Souls are currency and power among demons, so a demon soul must be worth something since it’s rare, right?”

“It’s cute that you disregard my stellar personality as a reason for demons wanting to kill me.”

Steve flinched at the derision in Tony’s tone. “Sorry.” He’d known better than to ask, but Steve had hoped that since he was approaching the soul issue from another angle he would have been reprieved from Tony’s ire. He should have reconsidered before speaking.

“Just don’t tell Bucky and Clint.”

Shock jolted Steve. “Why?” Steve’s brain rushed to cobble together an argument. “I don’t like keeping secrets from my boyfriends, and this is a pretty big one.”

“It’s not actually,” Tony stated. “Whether I have or soul or not changes nothing.”

Except it did. “If Bucky knew then maybe he wouldn’t be so critical with you? He could sympathize, see that you have—”

“No.” Tony’s expression turned as cold as stone. “No, you are not going to use my soul to guilt Bucky into feeling like he should treat me differently.”

“That’s not what I meant.”

“Except it is.” Tony clenched his fist in front of his face as if resisting the urge to strangle someone. “Dear all that is good in the world, I can’t believe that I’m going to have to act as the Bucky Barnes defense squad here.”

Steve frowned. “What are you talking about? I’m not attacking Bucky. I would never do that.”

“Not directly,” Tony said. “Steve, Bucky is one-hundred percent valid in feeling negatively towards me, and he is a friggin’ Saint. You and Clint too. Truth be told, if I were any of you, I would have flown into a crazy rage by now.”

Steve was stunned silent.

“Don’t get me wrong; I am disappointed that he rejects me, but I completely understand where he is coming from. I’m like the five-year-old kid Clint fathered, but none of you knew about until I showed up on your doorstep saying that Mom abandoned me. Except it’s worse than that, because I’m not even Clint’s family or someone he cares about. I showed up in all of your lives without warning and turned it upside down.

“And because you and Bucky are amazing people, you’ve stuck around because the two of you love Clint, which is beautiful, and why I admire you two so much. You’ve both made concessions and sacrifices. And you know what I do? I flirt with all three of you, and even though Bucky has rejected me, and Clint has told me to knock it off too. I flirt, and keep flirting because it is who I am, and to be honest, that would be enough for most people to deck me across the face.

“I might do some nice things for you guys, but I also know I do some annoying things too. I’m obsessive, narcissistic, stubborn, sarcastic, and a little clingy. All things that can get on a person’s nerves, and the worst thing Bucky has ever done to me is make a few mean comments, most of which I respond to with equal snark and sass.

“And I haven’t even gotten into the fine details of how I’ve changed things in all of your lives. Your three can’t even go on a movie date alone because I’ll eventually pop into the theater. You can’t go on _any_ date with Clint outside for more than two hours because at some point I’ll pop up.”

Tony threw his hands up in the air.  “Really! It’s astounding that all Bucky does is grouse!”

“Tony—”Steve started, but Tony cut him off.

“No, there’s more. I never mentioned to any of you that other demons might attack me or you three at any point. Never. Not only did I keep that lovely secret from you three, but my presence officially puts you three in danger, which drives Bucky even more nuts, because he’s the overprotective one of you three, and he is literally scared that someone is going to die at any moment. I wouldn’t be surprised if he has nightmares about it.”

“It’s not your fault though, Tony. We know you’re not the one who is attacking us. It’s the other demons. It’s also not your fault that we have to be a little more careful with our time management.”

Tony shook his head. “It’s not about whose fault it is, Steve. It’s about the fact that since I’ve shown up in Bucky’s life, everything has gone crazy around him, and he has every right to be mad about that. Just as you do. All three of you have the right to be angry; Bucky’s just the one person exercising that right, and I happen to be an easy target. And honestly, as much as it may sting at times, I rather have him attacking me than have him confronting a demon who might actually hurt him.”

Tony took a deep breath and released. “And you know what just floors me?”

Steve didn’t say anything; he wasn’t sure if Tony was being rhetorical.

“I’m not his favorite person right now, yet he still gave you permission to kiss me.” Tony shook his head. “That is a love and loyalty that is so rare, I could never truly begrudge anyone who possesses it anything. And it’s also because of that, that I cannot manipulate Bucky into accepting or liking me faster. I respect him too much for that.”

Steve took in a deep breath and let it out, giving himself an extra moment to process Tony’s speech, while also giving Tony a chance to continue if that was what he wanted. “Sorry, I wasn’t trying to encourage you to manipulate Bucky. I would never want that, Tony. Not for him or you. I just…” Steve found himself lacking words. Everything he’d said so far had blown up in his face.

Thankfully, Tony was patient and waited for Steve to find his words.

“I want you and Bucky to get along.”

“We get along.”

Steve shook his head. “I think your speech just now proves you don’t.”

“Actually, it does.” Tony crossed his arms over his chest and looked at the ceiling for a moment. “Bucky and I have an understanding. It’s not all warm and fuzzies like with you and Clint, but it works.”

“I’m not so sure. You two fight quite a bit.” Although they hadn’t since Tiberius, Steve mentally noted.

“Yeah, and he leaves me alone with you and Clint, which is very flattering.” Tony grinned. “Or did you miss the fact that you and Clint are the two most important people in his world? If he trusts me with you two, then that’s a pretty good sign. He also isn’t questioning my every move as I try to find some way to protect you guys from other demons. From him, well…” Tony put a fist over his heart. “It just warms my poor little shriveled heart.”

Steve wasn’t so sure he agreed with Tony. He wanted to, and Tony had excellent points, but Steve also knew Bucky. Bucky was prickly, but he usually warmed up to people by now. Then again, most people didn’t appear in Bucky’s apartment one day, move in, and start flirting with his boyfriends either.

Steve sighed and slouched. He hated admitting defeat, but perhaps it was time to surrender to the fact that he couldn’t control or manipulate Tony and Bucky’s relationship. All he could do is keep encouraging them to spend time together and get along.

“It would be nice to live in a peaceful apartment.” Steve cringed as the memory of his kiss with Tony surfaced. It had been a great kiss, and Steve would be lying if he said he didn’t want more. He wasn’t naive either; as open-minded as Bucky and Clint were being, any interest he had in Tony would put a strain on his relationship with them. There would hours of questions and negotiations to come if he pursued such a thing.

Tony tapped Steve on the head.

Steve looked up from his ponderings.

Tony smiled. “Hey, thinking and worrying is kind of my shtick. You mind not stealing it?”

Steve blinked. “You seem lackadaisical to me.”

Tony puffed up his chest and beamed. “That is because I am the best actor in all the worlds.”

Steve snickered. “What an ego.”

The door to Matt Murdock’s office opened and the man stepped outside, the bottles of ink resting in the crook of his elbow. He quirked an eyebrow at Steve and Tony. “Am I interrupting something?”

“Not at all.” Tony leaned back in his chair. He pillowed his head against the wall with his hands. “Steve, dear, could you be a love and grab the ink from his holiness?”

Steve nodded. He eyed Tony and Matt as he stood. It was intriguing to see Tony keeping his distance from someone. Tony was always in people’s spaces; it was like he was afraid to be alone or that he was desperate for contact.

“They’re blessed?” Steve took one of the offered containers of ink from Matt. The ink didn’t look any different.

Matt smiled crookedly. “You could always ask your boyfriend to hold it and see how he reacts.”

Tony sneered. “Not happening, you sadist.” He looked pointedly at the ink. “Don’t think I don’t sense just how blessed that ink is. Talk about overkill.”

“I thought you would appreciate it since you are so keen to protect your boyfriend and his boyfriends.”

Steve flipped the ink around in his hands. He wished he could see or sense whatever it was that Tony was picking up. He would have liked to have known exactly what “holiness” felt or looked like. “If it’s going to protect Bucky, Clint, and me then the holier the better.” Steve stuffed the ink into his satchel. He held out his hand for the rest. “Thank you.”

“No trouble at all. I believe in protecting those who cannot protect themselves.” Once again, Matt smiled crookedly. “However, perhaps next time you could wait until office hours are over? My partner and paralegal were very curious what I was doing inside my private office.”

“Hopefully there won’t be a next time,” Steve said. He adjusted his satchel to make sure the ink wouldn’t accidentally fall out.

Tony stood, pulling out his cell phone and typing something on it. “Just send me the invoice, okay?”

“My divine services are free,” Matt said.

Tony waved him off. “Then you’re an idiot. Also, I’m a demon. Deals are what I do.”

“I don’t recall making a deal with you.”

Tony scoffed. “Of course not. That would taint your holiness, which is what I need right now, so I’m not messin’ with that. However, sending some money your way after the fact is an entirely different matter.”

Matt shook his head. “I don’t take money.”

Tony scoffed. “Fine, I’ll give it to some charity and put your name on it. Maybe some charity for altar boys who were—”

“Tony!” Steve reprimanded before Tony could say something very offensive.

“Fine, fine.” Tony held up his hands in surrender. “I’ll just give it to some church.”

Steve took a deep breath to calm himself. “Sorry,” he apologized to Matt. “He gets very ornery and snarky when something makes him uncomfortable.”

Matt nodded.

Steve thanked Matt again then hurried Tony out of the building before Tony could try to make another quip at the expense of the Catholic Church.

Tony typed a quick text on his phone as Steve ushered him down the steps of the building and toward the motorcycle parked outside.

“Clint knows we got the ink,” Tony announced. “Also, he thinks I should teleport to him.” Tony double-checked the time on his phone. “There isn’t much time before I get yanked to his side, and he is in between classes now, so we don’t have to worry about me appearing in his lap in the middle of some lecture.”

Steve felt like he’d been hit with whiplash. One moment Tony was next to him—talking to him in a very serious manner—and suddenly he was dismissing himself from Steve’s side. He wouldn’t even look up from his cell phone as he talked.

“Are you mad at me? I understand if Matt makes you uncomfortable, but—”

“Now why would I be mad at you?” Tony frowned, but he still wouldn’t look at Steve.

“You're not looking at me, you’re keeping some distance between us, and you’re suddenly very quick to want to separate.”

Tony pried his eyes from the phone, a frown set on his face. “Steve, I literally will be yanked back to Clint in a few minutes. I can either wait for the yank or take control and go back to him now when it is convenient for us.”

Steve shifted with uncertainty. “It seems like something more though.”

Tony sighed and pocketed his phone. He grumbled as he marched up to Steve and held out his arms in an invite for a hug. “I swear I’m not angry at you. Now you can either hug me before I go, or you can question me.”

“Or I can do both.” Steve wrapped his arms around Tony. “Don’t let anything Matt or I said back there get to you.”

Tony let out an annoyed breath, but he strengthened his hug. “You’re really persistent, aren’t you?”

Steve pulled back and grinned down at Tony. “It’s one of my character traits. You’ll grow to love it.”

“I think you mean hate it, but sure. Go ahead and say ‘love’ for now.” Tony backed out of Steve’s hold. “Now, I have a date with your boyfriend, so see you later, and don’t you dare lose that ink. I do not want to come back here.”

“Will do,” Steve answered.

“Good.” With that Tony disappeared.


	3. Chapter 3

“So you kissed him?” Bucky slammed the knife into the core of the avocado he was cutting. The blade embedded itself into the nut, and Bucky lifted the seed with ease out of the fruit.

“I’m not so sure I should be having this discussion with you around knives.” Steve kept his distance and stood on the opposite side of the kitchen as Bucky prepped the ingredients for his sandwich.

Bucky pried the seed off the knife and tossed the seed into the garbage. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. Knives keep me calm.”

“You sound like a psychopath.”

Bucky smirked and held the knife up to his head. He stuck out his tongue as if he was going to lick the blade but didn’t actually do so.

Steve grimaced. “If you love me, you will go back to being my safety-conscious boyfriend and put down the knife.”

“Only because I’d ask you to do the same thing.” Bucky set the knife down on the cutting board, mindful of its placement and the way the blade faced so no one could accidentally cut themselves if they bumped into the board. “So you and Tony kissed.”

Steve swallowed. A part of him wanted to burst with excitement like a teenager experiencing their first crush, but another part of him was apprehensive. This was Bucky he was talking to, and Bucky didn’t have the most fond feelings for Tony.

Bucky leaned against the counter and crossed his arms over his chest. “Steve, please. Don’t hold back. You know we need to talk about this. That’s why instead of letting me de-stress after work, you decided to come in here and tell me about the kiss while I make myself lunner.”

“Lunner?”

“Lunch and dinner; I got caught up in one of the cars at the shop and skipped lunch.” Bucky’s lips quirked upward. “I figured I should give you fair warning in case it seems like I’m grouchy.”

“I can always wait until--”

“Oh no, you are telling me now.” A wicked gleam came into Bucky’s eyes. “This way I get some entertainment as you try extra hard not to offend me.”

“I’m starting to think you are a sadist.”

“Only for my boyfriends.” Bucky blew Steve a kiss.

Steve sighed. He supposed he could suffer a little for Bucky’s sake. “Fine, we kissed. Twice, actually.”

Bucky’s flirtatious face dropped to be replaced with a expression of calculation.

Steve hurried to explain. “He used the demon-whammy on me, and I guess he thought I was too distracted by my desire to focus on getting the ink blessed.”

“So you succeeded?” Bucky asked. “In blessing the ink?”

Steve nodded. “Eventually, but before that, Tony kissed me.” Steve paused, remembering the moment. “He made sure I had yours and Clint’s permission first. Then he just dove in for the kiss, and before I could really process it, it was over, and I--” Steve’s hands twitched at his side. “I wanted more.”

Steve bowed his head. “I just couldn’t be sure if I was attracted to him without one more kiss.”

“And are you attracted to him?”

Steve flushed, rubbed the back of his neck, and looked away.

Bucky let out a puff of breath, words not needed for him to understand Steve. “This is going to complicate things.”

“I could always ignore it,” Steve offered.

“I’m not so sure how healthy that would be,” Bucky said. “Maybe if he were just a coworker or a friend that would be okay, but he’s pretty involved in all of our lives.”

Steve’s stomach churned. “So then what should I do?”

Bucky shrugged, turning back to the cutting board. “You need to talk to Clint first to see what he thinks, but otherwise it’s up to you, Steve. I’m not thrilled, but I know you too, and I know whatever decision you make you’re not going to make lightly.”

Steve approached Bucky from behind and wrapped his arms around Bucky’s waist. He rested his head between Bucky’s shoulder blades. “I love you.”

“I know, punk, and I love you too. As I said, though, I haven’t had lunch, and now you’re interfering with my sandwich making, so could you back off for now? I promise we can kiss and stuff later.”

“Promise?”

“I promise I will eat your arms off if you don’t give me space to finish slicing this avocado, Stevie.”

Steve raised his arms and back away slowly.

Bucky snickered, and just as he lifted the knife to start slicing the avocado again, the apartment door opened and Tony and Clint poured in.

“We have two things to celebrate!” Tony announced. “Not only did we get our ink blessed, but thanks to me, Clint has passed another exam.”

Clint rolled his eyes but smiled. “No, no, please, take all the credit. You were the only one who put in any real effort.”

Tony preened. “I’ll do just that.”

“Congrats.” Bucky smiled at Clint. “Remind me to hug you later when I am not starving.”

Like a magnet, Tony was drawn to Bucky. He stood behind Bucky, resting his hands and chin on Bucky’s shoulders. He stood on his tiptoes to peer over Bucky’s shoulders and see what Bucky was slicing. “Oh, what are you making?”

Bucky shrugged Tony off. “Knock it off. I don’t want to cut myself.”

Tony pouted but sidestepped away from Bucky.

“Can I have some of what you’re making?” Tony asked.

Bucky smiled. “Sure.” He slid an uncut avocado toward Tony. “Make it yourself.”

“Hey, I make stuff for you all the time.”

“And I would hate to encroach on your independence. You’re a baby demon after all, right? I have to let you do things on your own or you will never learn.”

Tony feigned wiping away a tear. “Your heart is as cold as the tundra.”

Bucky rolled his eyes and pulled out a spare cutting board from one of the drawers. “Here. Get to chopping.”

Clint shook his head at Bucky and Tony. “I swear, sometime living with you two is like living with children. Neither one of you is as cute though.”

“Hey!” Bucky and Tony said in unison.

Clint chuckled, dropping his bag off to the side. He waved Steve over to join him in the living room. “Come on, Steve, I don’t know about you, but I a need some physical comfort after the day I’ve had.”

Steve frowned, following Clint and joining him on the couch. He leaned into the arm of the sofa, and stretched his leg across the couch so Clint could sit his lap. “I thought you passed your exam.”

Clint sighed as he sank into Steve. He grabbed Steve’s arm and wrapped the appendage around his waist. “I did, but I still had to take the test. My nerves haven’t fully recovered yet.”

“Fuck! Are you tryin’ to lose your fingers!” Bucky put down his knife and was suddenly in Tony’s space. His arms went around Tony and he grabbed the knife out of Tony’s hands. “You cut _away_ from yourself.”

“I know how to cut things,” Tony said petulantly. He glared at Bucky. “Trust me, in my early days I learned a lot of ways how to cut. I’m an expert.”

“Yeah, no,” Bucky sassed.

It was hard to see from his angle, but Steve was able to pick up that Bucky had taken Tony’s hands in his own and was showing Tony how to properly hold the knife and cut. “Like this.”

“That’s exactly what I was doing before.”

“No, it wasn’t.”

“Liar.”

“Why would I lie?”

Tony paused, his eyes flicking to the barely there space between them then up to Bucky’s eyes. “Because you’re a bully.”

Bucky choked on his reply.

Steve bit the inside of his cheek.

Clint snickered.

“What’s so funny?” Tony asked.

“Nothing,” Clint answered. “Steve has just always had a thing about bullies.”

“I’m not a bully!” Bucky protested.

“Are too.” Tony stuck out his tongue.

“I am protecting your fingers.”

“You are being an overly critical jerk.”

“And you should never be allowed in the kitchen again if you really don’t know how to cut properly.”

Tony grinned. “I agree.” He ducked under Bucky’s arms and stepped away. “Which is why you should make me a sandwich.”

Tony chuckled then scampered off like a kid who’d just gotten away with pulling off the most elaborate prank.

Steve could barely contain his laughter.

“Dude! Tony just played you like a fiddle!” Clint hooted and laughed.

Bucky stared down at all of his sandwich makings. “That little minx.”

“So are you going to make him a sandwich?” Clint grinned.

Bucky ran his fingers through his hair and grumbled. “I guess I don’t have much of a choice after that speech.” Bucky tilted his head back and raised his voice so Tony would hear him in the bedroom. “I’m not adding condiments though.”

“I love you!” Tony shouted.

“Yeah, yeah. Tricky ass demon. This is why I have trust issues.” Bucky grumbled as he picked Tony’s avocado off the demon’s cutting board and placed it on his.

Clint sighed and closed his eyes. He snuggled into Steve. “I needed that laugh.”

Steve smiled as he gently rubbed his hand along Clint’s arm. “Yeah.”

Steve had needed to see Bucky and Tony’s interaction too.

The two of them did bicker, and maybe he didn’t understand their relationship, but maybe he didn’t have to. After all, the only two people who needed to were Bucky and Tony. Maybe it wasn’t the cordial relationship Steve would have wanted, but that really wasn’t for him to decide.

Tony poked his head out from the hallway. “Could you add cheese to mine?”

Bucky stopped cutting and groaned. “You are killing me.”

“ _Softly, with my song~_ ” Tony sang.

“That’s it. You get your ass over here so I can spray you with the faucet for making such a terrible joke.”

Tony cackled and ran away to the bedroom.


End file.
